The Pillars of Rome: Book 1 of the Republic Series

With barbarians at the gate and enemies within, two men must fight for the soul of the Republic. In a cave hacked out of rock two young boys appeal to the famed Roman oracle for a glimpse into their future. In the flickering torchlight the Sybil draws the blood-red shape of an eagle with wings outstretched: an omen of death. As they flee the cave in fear, Aulus and Lucius make an oath of loyalty until death. An oath that will be tested in the years to come. Narrator Nick Boulton brings this story of prophecy, courage, history and adventure to powerful life....

Son of Blood: Book 1, The Crusades Trilogy

Twelth Century, Italy. The domination of the Normans, the most feared warriors in Christendom, is causing trouble. At their head is the feared Robert de Hauteville, the 'Guiscard', who has colonised much of Italy and now commands the triple Dukedom of the extended Norman family, but Robert has made many enemies, including the ever-powerful papacy in Rome.

The Last Roman: Vengeance

Fifth century of the Byzantium Empire. Flavius Belisaurius is son of the governor of Dorostorum City, and his father has two goals: to keep out the barbarians and to expose the deep roots of secular and ecclesiastical corruption. Seeking to prevent a raid, the Governor enlists the help of the powerful magnate, Senuthius Vicinus. Vicinus's corruption is widespread but his support is crucial to win the battle.

Under the Eagle: Eagles of the Empire, Book 1

The first novel in Simon Scarrow's bestselling Roman series. It is 42 AD, and Quintus Licinius Cato has just arrived in Germany as a new recruit to the Second Legion, the toughest in the Roman army. If adjusting to the rigours of military life isn't difficult enough for the bookish young man, he also has to contend with the disgust of his colleagues when, because of his imperial connections, he is appointed a rank above them.

Mercenaries

Six brothers, trained since birth to become great warriors, prepare to experience their first taste of battle…The Norman/French border, 1033. The sons of Tancred de Hauteville are following in their father’s footsteps. As knights, they have but one true purpose: to fight. But denied service with their Duke, they are forced to take employment as mercenaries: their unequalled battle skills are for hire to the highest bidder.

Strategos: Born in the Borderlands, Strategos 1

When the falcon has flown, the mountain lion will charge from the east, and all Byzantium will quake. Only one man can save the empire ... the Haga!1046 AD. The Byzantine Empire teeters on full-blown war with the Seljuk Sultanate. In the borderlands of Eastern Anatolia, a land riven with bloodshed and doubt, young Apion's life is shattered in one swift and brutal Seljuk night raid. Only the benevolence of Mansur, a Seljuk farmer, offers him a second chance of happiness.

Wounds of Honour: Empire I

Thrilling, authentic, and action packed, this novel introduces soldier hero Marcus Valerius: a centurion stationed on Hadrian's Wall in the second century during a revolt against the Roman Empire. Marcus Valerius Aquila has scarcely landed in Britannia when he has to run for his life - condemned to dishonorable death by power-crazed emperor Commodus. The plan is to take a new name, serve in an obscure regiment on Hadrian's Wall, and lie low until he can hope for justice.

God of Vengeance: The Rise of Sigurd 1

Norway, AD 785. It began with the betrayal of a lord by a king.... King Gorm puts Jarl Harald's family to the sword but makes one fatal mistake - he fails to kill Harald's youngest son, Sigurd. His kin slain, his village seized and its people taken as slaves, Sigurd wonders if the gods have forsaken him. Hunted by powerful men, he is unsure who to trust, and yet he has a small band of loyal followers at his side.

The Last Kingdom: The Last Kingdom Series, Book 1

The first book in a brand-new series, The Last Kingdom is set in England during the reign of King Alfred. Uhtred is an English boy, born into the aristocracy of ninth-century Northumbria. Orphaned at 10, he is captured and adopted by a Dane and taught the Viking ways. Yet Uhtred's fate is indissolubly bound up with Alfred, King of Wessex, who rules over the only English kingdom to survive the Danish assault. The struggle between the English and the Danes and the strife between christianity and paganism is the background to Uhtred's growing up.

Hunting the Eagles

Five long years have passed since the annihilation of three Roman legions in the wilds of Germania. Varus, the general who led the ill-fated army, is long dead, and the bones of his 15,000 legionaries moulder in the forests. But not all the Romans were slain in the ambush. Centurion Tullus, a seasoned veteran, survived, and now he lives for revenge upon the tribal chieftain Arminius, who masterminded the ambush. Tullus will stop at nothing to kill his bitterest enemy or to recover his legion's lost Eagle.

Stiger's Tigers: Chronicles of an Imperial Legionary Officer, Book 1

The empire has endured many centuries but is now threatened by multiple wars and a major rebellion in the South. A nobleman from an infamous family, an imperial legionary officer, a fighter, and a right proper bastard of a man, Captain Ben Stiger finds himself reassigned from a crack legion to the rebellion simmering in the South. Placed in command of a truly terrible company, the 85th Imperial Foot, he is unknowingly sent on a suicide mission to resupply an isolated outpost, the garrison of Vrell.

The Serpent Sword: The Bernicia Chronicles, Book 1

Beobrand is compelled by his brother's almost-certain murder to embark on a quest for revenge in the war-ravaged kingdoms of Northumbria. The land is rife with danger, as warlords vie for supremacy and dominion. In the battles for control of the region, new oaths are made and broken, and loyalties are tested to the limits. With no patronage and no experience, Beobrand must form his own allegiances and learn to fight with sword and shield. Relentless in pursuit of his enemies, he faces challenges which transform him from a boy to a man.

Betrayal: The Centurions I

Rome, AD 68. Nero has committed suicide. One hundred years of imperial rule by the descendants of Julius Caesar has ended, and chaos rules. His successor, Galba, dismisses the incorruptible Germans of the Imperial Bodyguard for the crime of loyalty to the dead emperor. Ordering them back to their homeland, he releases a Batavi officer from a Roman prison to be their prefect. But Julius Civilis is not the loyal servant of empire that he seems.

Soldier of Rome: The Legionary Book One of the Artorian Chronicles

In the year A.D. 9, three Roman Legions under Quintilius Varus were betrayed by the Germanic war chief, Arminius, and destroyed in the forest known as Teutoburger Wald. Six years later Rome is finally ready to unleash her vengeance on the barbarians. The Emperor Tiberius has sent his adopted son, Germanicus Caesar, into Germania with an army of forty-thousand legionaries. The come not on a mission of conquest, but one of annihilation. With them is a young legionary named Artorius.

Young Bloods: Wellington and Napoleon, Book 1

Arthur Wesley (the future Duke of Wellington) was born and bred to be a leader. With a firm belief that the nation must be led by a king, the red-coated British officer heads for battle against the French Republic, to restore the fallen monarchy. Napoleon Bonaparte joins the French military on the eve of the Revolution. He believes leadership is won by merit, not by noble birth. When anarchy explodes in Paris, he's thrust into the revolutionary army poised to march against Britain.

Fin Gall - A Novel of Viking Age Ireland: Norsemen Saga Series #1

For centuries, the Vikings have swept out of the Norse countries and fallen on whatever lands they could reach aboard their longships, and few could resist the power of their violent onslaught. They came at first to plunder and then to settle, an encroachment fiercely resisted wherever they went. Such was the case in the southern lands of Ireland. En route to the Viking longphort there, known as Dubh-linn, Thorgrim Night Wolf and Ornolf the Restless stumble across an Irish ship.

Marching with Caesar: Birth of the 10th Legion

Titus Pullus, the hero of the 10th Legion and the Marching With Caesar series, tells his story from the very beginning of his life, starting with his relationship with his father, how his friendship with Vibius Domitius began, and how their burning ambition to join the Legions was helped by a veteran nicknamed Cyclops. Enlisting in the 10th Legion, raised in 61 B.C. by Gaius Julius Caesar, Birth of the 10th Legion recounts the first campaign ever conducted by Julius Caesar as a commander...

Arena

Pavo's journey begins when he encounters the Roman soldier Macro, who has been charged with his training. Bonds of friendship develop between the two men, both aware that their fates depend not only on Pavo's skills in the arena but also on the whims of powerful and ruthless senators. Can Pavo survive to fulfil his most cherished goal - revenge for the murder of his father at the hands of a champion gladiator?

Publisher's Summary

Aulus is dead. Hailed as a hero of the republic, his sons, Quintus and Titus, have new and heavy responsibilities placed upon them. Lucius, now the most powerful - and sinister - senator in Rome, is keen to manipulate the Cornelii family to achieve his own goals.

Meanwhile, the young Aquila lives in Spain with dreams of becoming a powerful solider to fight for Rome, and discover his destiny, hidden within his Eagled amulet.

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

While the narration is acceptable, the author plays fast and loose with history. Many anachronisms exist in the story. It is unfortunate, as it would have set up well as a comparison to the Populares vs Beni politics of Caesar???s time. The series doesn???t break well in the books. None of the characters are particularly well rounded, nor can one sympathize much with any of them.

What do you think your next listen will be?

different author.

Which character ??? as performed by Nick Boulton ??? was your favorite?

Marcellius

Did The Sword of Revenge inspire you to do anything?

no.

Any additional comments?

A true historical type fiction such as found in Sayer's books or in Colleen McCullough's books would have been very interesting. Instead, one is presented with a story that is mildly interesting but lacks any real historical footing.

I don't write reviews, not sure anyone wants to hear what I think, but I was so disappointed in the end of this series, that I felt compelled. The series was so complete beforehand, so rich and full of character development that I couldn't wait for each new book. It was clear from reading this last in the trilogy that the author was up against a deadline in finishing the series; that he wrapped up the entire story in a few pages. The defeat of the ultimate enemy, the discovery of who our hero truly was, his meeting with his mother to tell him the truth, all brought to fruition in such a rapid fashion, that I was left feeling cheated. Shame on the author for taking us on a wonderful ride, only to completly let the reader down in the end.